


Humility: Power & Control

by SmolBeanDrabbles



Category: Lost River (2014)
Genre: Claustrophobia, F/M, Female Reader, Sexual connotations, Subtle Sub/Dom tones, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-24
Updated: 2020-05-24
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:20:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24354964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmolBeanDrabbles/pseuds/SmolBeanDrabbles
Summary: Some of Dave’s performers are fed up with his attitude. It’s time for them to teach him some humility. And they figure that asking his favourite to do this for kicks makes their plan flawless… You’ll agree to do it, for a price.
Relationships: Dave/reader
Kudos: 18





	Humility: Power & Control

**Author's Note:**

> Part of my 7 Deadly Sins / 7 Heavenly Virtues Request Challenge from Tumblr
> 
> Lyrics: Power & Control - Marina and the Diamonds / Almost Easy - Avenged Sevenfold

_I feel insane every single time  
I’m asked to compromise  
‘Cause I’m afraid and stuck in my ways  
And that’s the way it stays  
So how long did I expect  
Love to outweigh ignorance?  
By that look on your face  
I may have forced the scale to tip  
  
_ _Shame pulses through my heart  
From the things I’ve done to you  
It’s hard to face but the fact remains  
That this is nothing new…  
_ _  
I’m losing the fight, I’ve treated you so wrong  
Now let me make it right  
_ ** _  
_** _I’m not insane, I’m not, not insane…  
Come back again, it’s almost easy  
(You learned your lesson)  
Come back to me, it’s almost easy  
(It’s still your fault)  
Come back again, it’s almost easy…_  
  
—  
  
 _Give a little, get a lot_  
 _That's just how you are with love..._  
  
 _Power & control  
I’m gonna make you fall  
Power & control  
I’m gonna make you fall  
_ _  
Women and men, we are the same  
But love will always be game  
We give and take a little more  
Eternal game of tug and war  
_ _  
Think you’re funny, think you’re smart  
Think you’re gonna break my heart  
Think you’re funny, think you’re smart  
Yeah, you may be good-looking but you’re not a piece of art  
_  
—

_noun_

  1. The quality of having a modest or low view of one’s importance.



Whispers spread like wildfire. You expected that from the second you got on stage. Bitchy bickering. Or complaining, you guessed?  
It always happened when Dave caught your eye, or your wrist after your act was finished.  
 _“Meet me later…”  
_ You knew what that meant well enough. You didn’t need him to tell you. Mind you, Dave caught your arm so often his fingerprints might as well have been imprinted into your skin.  
  


It wasn’t that they were jealous of you. Probably the contrary. That didn’t stop the whispers though. And tonight, as you changed, they seemed to be a little louder than usual;  
“I mean who the hell does he think he is-!? Walking around like he’s better than us?!”  
“Like he _owns_ the place!”  
“He **does** own the place… but still, fair point. We do all the hard work!!”  
“People come for us - he only ever sings!”  
“And that’s only on bloody occasion too - not every night!”  
“We have way better work ethic-! I bet he doesn’t even PAY us fairly.”  
“I bet he pays _himself_ better than us.”  
“…Well, he might pay some of us well then…” they all turned around to you, and you saw that from your mirror. You sighed, _here we go again._ Couldn’t be for love… _had to be for money_ …  
  
You supposed it might not even have been for love, maybe just for company… but he wasn’t paying you for your time. They turned back - whispered muttering you couldn’t hear that made you focus back on your mirror. You caught the paper tacked there out of the corner of your eye. Dave’s writing; “ _Room 3_ ”. You took a deep breath. A little part of you was always a little nervous about it. Dave had very distinct moods; if this wasn’t a good one, it might give you problems…  
“Oh! Y/N..!” Their eyes all on you again as they called your name, you swiveled, pressing you lips together to even out the lipstick;  
“Mm?”  
“Come here a second.”  
You sighed and stood; this could only be bad. “What’s wrong?”  
“Nothin’, yet. You seein’ Dave tonight?”  
Well, they knew you were so it was a stupid question. But they wanted affirmation. “Yes…”  
“We got an idea…”  
You didn’t like this one bit already, “Right…”  
“But we need your help.”  
You folded your arms, eyes narrowed in suspicion; “Why?”  
Rob gave you a look like you were dumb; “Because you’re his favourite! He trusts you.”  
 _No,_ you thought, you were his favourite _right now_. Next week that could all change, especially if someone newer, younger and prettier walked in. Dave was always down to seduce the next big thing.  
“…Well what is it?”  
“Well, you agree. He thinks he’s great. Right?”  
“Yeah.” He did, on occasion, get this smug kinda swagger about him that annoyed you. Clearly not as much as it annoyed them though.  
“And it’s getting a little out of hand?”  
“Maybe.” You didn’t want to seem decisive on this  
“Maybe?! C’mon Y/N, don’t be amicable - he thinks he can do whatever the fuck he wants. We gotta stop this before we _can’t_ anymore.”  
“Well, what do you want me to do?!”  
“He taking you to a room tonight?”  
You glanced back to your mirror, “Yes.”  
“Give him a taste of his own medicine.”  
“How?!”  
“Which room?”  
“Three.”  
Their circle conferred for a minute, and suddenly you didn’t like the smirks they were giving each other; “Shells, huh?”  
That didn’t really bother you. Dave had a remote, sure, but you knew him. “Yes?” You wondered where this was going.  
“Lock him in one.”  
 ** _“What?!”_** That sounded about as crazy as they all looked.  
“Yes! That’s such an excellent idea!!”  
“You guys do realise the lock mechanism keeps you safe, right? And that he has a remote system too?”  
Rob tipped his head knowingly, “Aw, like as if a girl like you can’t wrangle the remote from him?”  
You frowned at that - yeah, you guessed he had a point. “And… what am I doing this for?”  
Kat scoffed; “Yourself for one!”  
You almost dared shoot her a look, but Rob cut in before the cat fight could start. “The good of all your friends here! Our eternal gratitude? To feel good! Put him in his place? Y/N, the list is endless!” You noticed no one was offering up a monetary reward! You shook your head with a smirk;  
“Okay. But I’m getting bragging rights for at least a year, I get a longer routine, AND-!” You put your hands on your hips and turned to Rob, “I get to be the MC. At _least_ a couple of times.”  
“Well, you gotta prove you did it.”  
Your smirk only grew; "There’s one-way glass isn’t there? You’re welcome to **watch**.” All of them opened their mouths, hesitated, and looks appeared on their faces which let you know they realised exactly what that would entail.  
“Bring us the remote and any other proof you can. We’ll take it.”  
“Alright, you’re on…” you held out your hand, Rob took it, and everyone else grabbed your handshake.  
You winked; “You guys better be thinking of how many precious seconds you can shave off… _I’m coming for them_.”  
  


**  
  
  
Only that meant, by the time the show was over and pretty much everyone had left, except the huddled group, because they wanted to make 100% you were going to go ahead with this; you were even _more_ nervous.  
You could do it; but did you want to? Dave was good to you, forward sure - but a good man. And he took care of everyone here. Even if he had a kinda _self-important_ attitude.  
Still, you saw their point completely. He usually got what he wanted; there was something alluring about him, and you probably weren’t the only girl he’d taken an interest in working here. You’d heard the words ‘ _Dave Situation_ ’ often enough.  
In fact you probably weren’t the only girl he was seeing _right now_. But, you were his favourite. Apparently.  
  


He stood watching you wait patiently for a few minutes. Leaning on the door frame, with a smile. S _uch a good girl_. But Dave knew that already. He scanned the room, frowning a little at those still loitering. He knew who had clients tonight and who didn’t. That caused him slight annoyance as he stepped into the dressing room, calling your name.  
You turned instantly with a sweet smile and he walked towards you. Dave had an energy that was almost unreadable, that uncertainty gave him power and he knew it.  
His eyes traced the group who had allowed pause in their talking;  
“You can go home, right?” He looked between them, “I don’t pay you to stand around here, you don’t earn commission chatting either. Go home. Get rest.”  
“Yeah, we know what we need to do to get _paid_ around here.”  
You didn’t visibly wince at that obvious shot at what was about to happen between you and Dave; but he simply furrowed his eyebrows.  
Saying nothing, he turned back to you; “You ready?”  
“Mmm!” You nodded and stood gracefully.  
“Good… let’s go.” You turned to the group again with a wink; _watch this!!  
  
_

**

  
You always thought that the electronic female voice telling you to play safe was a tad ironic, considering the catered to audience. And you thought that shell safety was a little bit of a joke too. Dave, after all, did have a remote that overrode the locking system. Who said he didn’t have more he could give out for the right price? You wouldn’t have thought he would though. Even Dave didn’t seem like the kind of man who would put you in danger for money.  
  
He waited for the lock to click in place on the entry door and then was on you. Leaving you little-to-no time to take a breath, you found yourself pushed up against the wall in less than seconds. You weren’t wearing a heck of a lot anyway, but your thin coverup didn’t last long - _floor_ \- you weren’t about to let him get away with something like that without going for it yourself. _Where the hell would he keep his remote, though? M_ aybe you could get him to give that information up…   
You made sure to let him know you didn’t want him wearing his suit jacket too long either - _floor_. He’d already done the work on his top two buttons, allowing you to push his shirt collar back and kiss his neck. You got a kick out of the sounds he made, and the way he gripped your hips tighter;   
_“…Y/N…”_ Oh! Well, if you could keep him saying your name like that…  
You bit him just hard enough, and pushed him back. When he conceded a step you knew this would be easy… it couldn’t have been many to the shell, push him in and lock it, and your work was done.

  
But Dave wanted your lips back on his. So he pulled you to him, hands running as much of your body as was within reach, with you pressed up against him like this.  
 _Oh god- Dave… Yes-!_ He knew exactly what he was doing. He’d certainly never wasted his time with getting in tune with you. Okay, so what if you pulled him to the shell, if you lulled him into a false sense of security…  
You turned him, tugging him closer to you by his shirt. And your moans were are real as his were. He’d deny you his fingertips if he thought he could. There was nothing quite like the way he touched you. Dave chuckled, as he realised where you were heading.  
 _“My, my, so eager?”_  
“Yes…” You pitched your voice at just whiny and needy enough for him to give it to you.  
“Good girl.”  
 _…C'mon a few more feet…_ You paused just in front of the shell and broke his trial of kisses.  
“What?”  
You looked between his eyes; it was strange to think that for once this man had no idea what was coming. You shook your head, kissing him again - this only soft and gentle, and you knew you were asking for forgiveness before you’d even done what you were going to. You took his hands in yours, turning him on the spot. _Perfect.  
  
_ Best guess on where the remote was and you could do this; and it’s not like he would mind your hands on his body.  
But that kiss confused him. Being so different from the rest as it was. Dave didn’t have time to quiz you though; because you pulled him again, this time undoing a few more buttons, you ran your hands down his body. That picked his groan back up. He wouldn’t have dared leave his remote in his jacket, that ruled that out. It wasn’t in his shirt pocket… that left his pants.  
 _And Dave was left handed.  
_ “…Careful…” He whispered against your lips as your hands had to run that low; “don’t make me call you a bad girl just yet…”  
Only he would be. Considering. The second you found it you broke the kiss - and pushed him. It was pretty hard and athletic for you. He realised what you’d done far too late and the door closed on him.  
  


At first he sighed, and then laughed; “Oh I see…” but he didn’t. “ _Funny…_ let me out.” You at least gave a playful shake of your head “Y/N, don’t make this hard on yourself.” your eyes flicked to his hands searching his pockets. He still thought he had the upper hand.  
And there was a sick sort of pleasure in watching his face change as he realised he didn’t.  
“Wh-!”  
You held the remote up; “Looking for this?”  
He slammed his hands on the plexiglass - clearly unimpressed. “C’mon, Y/N!”  
You at least laughed a little, folding your arms “Nah, I think it’s good for you…”  
Dave’s face changed again, and you’d never seen him look so vulnerable; _“W…why??”  
_ Your eyes flicked to the club above your heads; “They all think you need a taste of your own medicine. I say they probably have a point,” you threw the remote behind you. You wouldn’t need it for at least a minute; “I have to watch you out here, trapped in that. Now you have to watch me…” You tilted your head “…The crew thinks you think you’re _too good for us_. Guess you have that air, but just because you’re in charge doesn’t mean…” you weren’t even sure Dave was listening as he looked around the enclosed space you’d now trapped him in. If he was looking for an escape route, you could happily confirm for him there wasn’t one. You continued “…I guess they think you have an attitude problem they’d like you to tone down… **Me?** I’m just not sure I hold your attention, or _could ever hope to_ hold it… and I’m not sure how that makes me feel. But certainly not good. You can’t always do whatever you want and expect it not to have… consequences…”  
  


Dave sounded like he was laughing, half hysterically. Like all the words you were saying meant nothing. All jokes to him. Only you realised with horror he wasn’t laughing.  
Dave was having a full on panic attack.  
 ** _SHIT HE’S CLAUSTROPHOBIC!!?!_**  
“Oh my god!! Shit!!!” You turned around; with the nonchalant way you’d chucked the remote it could be anywhere and you, nor he, really had the time for you to waste. “Shit! Dave! Just hold on!!!”  
 _Damn the seedy lighting in these rooms!!_ Eventually it glinted at you from a corner and you couldn’t run to it quick enough. Running back to the shell you never thought you’d heard anything that gave you as much relief as  
 _Shell Unlocked_

Dave all but collapsed into yours arms; gripping you tight. “Baby… baby… hush… _hush._ It’s okay… it’s okay, I’m here…” You sank down onto your knees, cradling him close to you with soothing tones; “Breathe… sweetheart… just breathe…” If you could regulate his breathing, hopefully you could help him calm down.  
… _Well that wasn’t exactly the humble kind of attitude you expected to evoke._ Sure you wanted him to meekly beg you, before you to let him out with an agreement that he’d bend to what the guys wanted. So you could put him on his knees and call him a **_good boy_** and feel whatever power he did. But this was more like humiliation. And you weren’t so sure he deserved that. Also, causing a panic attack was the last thing you’d wanted. That was such an awful thing to do.  
You had a sudden horrific thought; _did they know??!_ Had they asked you to do this because they knew?!  
  
It took him a little while to calm down, and he was still clinging onto you even then.  
“I’m _so_ sorry…”  
Dave shook his head gently; “Is that how you feel…?” He nodded to the shell “When you step in that?!”  
“I’m not claustrophobic, so no. I’m fine, but, Dave I’m sorry. If I had any idea…”  
“That’s why they asked _you_ to do it, isn’t it. Because you didn’t know.”  
“They do?!” Your heart sank and you felt slightly sick – they really had come up with this plan to set off his claustrophobia then. But they didn’t consider you either, did they just expect you to let it happen to him and laugh it off? It hurt you that you’d hurt him.  
“They probably have some idea…” His breathing was still deep; “Did you mean what you said?”  
You ran your hands through his hair, “We don’t have to talk about that…”  
“On the contrary, I thought you put me in there to talk about it?” He let out a small laugh “Good negotiation tactic, I’ll give it that.”  
You moved your hands slowly as you dared down to his chest. To feel his pulse, under your fingertips - the way it was calming down. _Thank Goodness.  
  
_

Dave lay in your arms in silence for a good while; his only movement a shift to get more comfortable and his hands found yours, clasping them with a gentle, dare you say affectionate, squeeze. You bent your body and kissed his forehead with care, making his eyes flick to your face and one hand reach up to touch your cheek.  
“What are you staying here for?”  
“I’m staying for you. I want to make sure you’re okay.”  
He shook his head, with a chuckle that seemed almost out of place; “Is that what it is?”  
 _“Mmmm…”_ You couldn’t help but place your hand over his and fit your fingers between the spaces in his own.  
“You’re a good girl.”  
“I…” you wouldn’t disagree, neither would you agree with him. You just humbly bit your lip and dipped your head a little more; “…Can I get you out of here?”  
He let you help him sit up and then you stood together - still holding hands that way. “Yeah, sure. What you thinkin’?”  
“Room 5?”  
Even he raised his eyebrow at your suggestion of the bedroom. “Why?”  
“It’s a little more comfortable that the floor,” you nodded to the shell, “it’s considerably lacking in claustrophobic spaces.”  
Dave chuckled again; “ _Aw_ , she’s good and smart too.”  
This time you conceded quietly; “I try my best…”  
  


**

  
Your idea with bringing him in here had nothing to do with taking your clothes off. This was much more neutral; it would give him a safe space to just calm down, chat, _rest easy._  
  


You shut the door and waited for it to click into a locked position.  
 _Please play sa-_  
“SHUT UP!!!” You chided the female voice with annoyance and turned back to him; “Seriously? Do you know how annoying that thing is?!? And talk about _IRONIC!!”  
_ He sat on the edge of the bed and threw his jacket over the chair, “It’s supposed to be fun! But I’ll take it into account.” Dave ran a hand through his greying hair, and loosened two or three more of his shirt buttons. “I don’t like your use of the word ironic…”  
“Safe is about the last word I would use sometimes. This room...” You folded your arms, watching the way his fingers grazed against the fabric of his shirt a little too closely _. Ah!_ Maybe this **was** a bad idea! You shook the thought away, “… _This_ one is something different. This is what goes on between you and me. But the shells, and some of these other rooms. Because of the barriers, I reckon people think they can do whatever they want without consequence.” You walked over to him slowly, “Just because I know I’m locked in there, doesn’t mean I feel safe if someone is screaming things I’d rather not repeat, and trying to get me out.”  
Dave looked a little perplexed at that; and you figured he either was pretending he didn’t know, or he simply thought if he ignored it it wasn’t happening. But his gaze dropped from yours as you sank onto the bed next to him, so you knew he was taking responsibility for it in his head. As he should - being the establishment owner.  
  
“I’m…”  
“Sorry?” You shook your head “It’s a little late for both of us to say that tonight, don’t you think?”  
“Why didn’t you tell me?” He places his hands on your thighs, over where your own were resting.  
“Would you have listened?” You gave him a hard look, to let him know you weren’t messing around when you said that.  
He gave a sigh “I wish I wasn’t even _considering_ that I might not.”  
You tipped his chin back with your fingertips, so his eyes faced you; “We both have a few things to work on, _huh?_ ”  
“What do you have to-!”  
You placed your finger to Dave's lips; and you got a few seconds satisfaction of having them back on your skin; “I should never have agreed to do it…”  
He took your hands in his again - he wanted that physical connection too, it seemed - and those grey-blue eyes studied you; “…God, I must be truly **_awful_** for you to agree to do this…”

You weren’t sure he was. That was the problem. Maybe he had good intentions that just didn’t work out. Of all the men you’d interacted with here (besides your colleges), Dave was the only one who cared, and took care of you. Who made you glad that you got to be here with him, and even more glad no one else **could.**  
You gave a gentle shrug, “Maybe I had stupid selfish reasons…”  
Dave caught on straight away; “You think I’m seeing someone else.”  
“Are you?” You tried to not look so hopeful that he’d deny it.  
“It’s not… like this…” That confused you; because it was neither a yes or a no.  
You bit your lip “I don’t share well.”  
That only made him sigh again; “Seems we share **that** problem.”  
“Who is she?”  
“Not you…”  
“That’s not an answer.”  
“I know. It’s much less than you deserve. But I am also not at liberty to say…”  
That had you turning away from him, so he pulled you back - “Y/N, I promise you, you are the _only_ girl I am intent on actively seeing.”  
“ **Good.** Because I’ll put you in the box again and throw away the remote otherwise.”  
There was a stalemate of staring for a moment; Dave cracked first; “And… that would be fair.”

  
The sexual chemistry of the evening had long since passed, and he looked like he was doing a lot better. But you still craved some of that promised intimacy.  
“Will you hold me?”  
“Now?” He opened his body to you; allowing you to wind your arms around him and thread your legs with his “Of course. It is the least you deserve.” Dave could say that all he wanted, but it was obvious he needed it as bad. When he felt you were secure around him, he lay back on the bed; caressing your hair he whispered gentle apologies against your skin.  
You closed your eyes gently to that - and this once; because of the feeling of him against you like this - you wouldn’t tell him they weren’t good enough.   
“Ah-! Shoot!” You broke the silence in a way that had him laughing  
“What?” His voice was still soft, and he pressed kisses into your forehead.  
You opened your mouth with a breath, and then covered it; “No! You know I still feel terrible! Buuuut…”  
 _“Buuuut...?”_ He repeated with a smile.  
“… I promised them I’d prove I did it.” You muttered with a pout “Gosh, _I’m awful_ …”  
Dave snorted “Okay, darling, where’s your proof coming from?”  
You tipped your head, and couldn’t resist the tease; “Guess you walking in tomorrow looking a little shaken would do the trick, huh?”  
“Don’t push it!” He growled gently, tracing his kisses across your cheek and jawline  
“I said I’d get the remote.”  
He pulled back, eyebrow raised; “How would that prove it?”  
“I have it, which means I got it from you and locked you in there, as dictated by the plan!”  
He propped himself up on his elbow and couldn’t help but look amused “oh, _really?_ Interesting.”  
“Uh huh. But that means asking for it back...”  
“Oh.” He shrugged “Take it, you deserve your proof!”  
  


You were surprised by that - he’d just been through a personal hell but Dave was still going to tell you win?  
“Oh you don’t need-”  
“Consider it a favour. I owe you enough, don’t you think?” Dave ran his thumb over your lips as he held your chin to keep your gaze on his.  
“ _Y-Yes..._ ” you couldn’t help but respond that way to the glint in his eyes. And he went back into his pocket; holding out the remote for you.  
He chuckled; “You go prove to them you _did._ I’ll go work on myself, and we’ll go from there. What do you say?”  
You smiled, taking the remote gently from his hand and looking back to him, lacing your fingers with his once more; you asked him for a kiss and Dave granted you with what you wanted. Pushing his forehead to yours he kept you barely millimetres apart, tangled up together.  
“I think… that’s a good idea.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you very much for reading!


End file.
